Currently, the most common method of temporarily occluding the ascending aorta during open heart surgery utilizes a mechanical cross clamp. Once the chest cavity has been opened, access to the heart and to the adjacent vessels is provided. The ascending aorta is partially dissected from the surrounding tissue and exposed. Arterial and venous cannulas are inserted and sutured into place. The cannulas are connected to the cardiopulmonary bypass machine, and bypass blood oxygenation is established.
At this point, the heart must be arrested and isolated from the rest of the circulatory system. A mechanical cross clamp is positioned between cardioplegia cannula and the aortic cannula and actuated. The aorta is completely collapsed at the clamp site, thus stopping flow of blood between the coronary arteries and the innominate artery the oxygenated bypass blood is shunted around the heart. Once the vessel occlusion has been completed, cardioplegia solution is introduced through the cardioplegia cannula to arrest the heart. The surgeon may now proceed with the desired operation.
Other less common means of occluding the aorta include percutaneous balloon catheter occlusion, direct aortic balloon catheter (Foley) occlusion, aortic balloon occluder cannula, and an inflating diaphragm occluder (Hill--occlusion trocar). The percutaneous balloon catheter is inserted typically from the femoral artery feed through the descending aorta, across the aortic arch into position in the ascending aorta. Once in the ascending aorta, the balloon occluder is inflated and flow stopped.
As a simple replacement for the mechanical cross clamp, a Foley catheter may be placed through an additional incision site near the standard cross clamp site. Once inserted, the Foley catheter balloon is inflated and flow is stopped. Similarly, an aortic balloon occluder cannula is placed directly into the aorta. This occluder cannula replaces the standard aortic cannula by delivering the CPB blood back to the arterial circulatory system. The occluder balloon is located on the cannula proximal to CPB blood exit port on the cannula. It may also replace the need for a cardioplegia cannula with an additional infusion port proximal to the occluder balloon. The occlusion trocar is described to offer similar features as the aortic balloon occluder cannula and would be used in place of the standard aortic cannula. However, it relies on an inflatable diaphragm to occlude the vessel.
The use of a balloon to occlude an artery has been disclosed by Gabbay, U.S. Pat. No. 5,330,451 (this and all other references cited herein are expressly incorporated by reference as if fully set forth in their entirety herein). The Gabbay device included a perfusion cannula having a proximal balloon occluder and a distal intra-aortic balloon to divert blood to the carotid arteries. The Gabbay perfusion cannula is disclosed for use during open heart surgery in order to prevent complications associated therewith.
Moreover, Peters, U.S. Pat. No. 5,433,700, discusses a method for inducing cardioplegic arrest using an arterial balloon catheter to occlude the ascending aorta. The Peters method includes the steps of maintaining systemic circulation using peripheral cardiopulmonary bypass, venting the left side of the heart, and introducing a cardioplegic agent into the coronary circulation. This procedure is said to prepare the heart for a variety of surgical procedures. Disclosures of similar endovascular occlusion catheters can be found in Machold et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,458,574, Stevens, International Application No. PCT/US93/12323, and Stevens et al., International Application No. PCT/US94/12986.
There are a number of known devices designed to filter blood. The vast majority of these devices are designed for permanent placement in veins, in order to trap emboli destined for the lungs. For example, Kimmell, Jr., U.S. Pat. No. 3,952,747, discloses the so-called Kimray-Greenfield filter. This is a permanent filter typically placed in the vena cava comprising a plurality of convergent legs in a generally conical array, which are joined at their convergent ends to an apical hub. Each leg has a bent hook at its end to impale the internal walls of the vena cava.
Cottenceau et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,375,612, discloses a blood filter intended for implantation in a blood vessel, typically in the vena cava. This device comprises a zigzagged thread wound on itself and a central strainer section to retain blood clots. This strainer section comprises a meshed net and may be made from a biologically absorbable material. This device is also provided with attachment means which penetrate into the wall of the vessel.
Gunther et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,329,942, discloses a method for filtering blood in the venous system wherein a filter is positioned within a blood vessel beyond the distal end of a catheter by a positioning means guided through the catheter. The positioning means is locked to the catheter, and the catheter is anchored to the patient. The filter takes the form of a basket and is comprised of a plurality of thin resilient wires. This filter can be repositioned within the vessel to avoid endothelialization within the vessel wall.
Similarly, Lefebvre, French Patent No. 2,567,405, discloses a blood filter for implantation by an endovenous route into the vena cava. The filter is present in the form of a cone, and the filtering means may consist of a flexible metallic grid, or a flexible synthetic or plastic grid, or a weave of synthetic filaments, or a non-degradable or possibly biodegradable textile cloth. In order to hold the filter within the vein, this device includes flexible rods which are sharpened so that they may easily penetrate into the inner wall of the vena cava.
There are various problems associated with permanent filters. For example, when a filter remains in contact with the inner wall of the vena cava for a substantial period of time, endothelialization takes place and the filter will subsequently become attached to the vena cava. This endothelialization may cause further occlusion of the vessel, thereby contributing to the problem the filter was intended to solve. Except for the Gunther device, these prior art filters do not address this problem.
A temporary venous filter device is disclosed in Bajaj, U.S. Pat. No. 5,053,008. This device treats emboli in the pulmonary artery which, despite its name, is in fact a vein. The Bajaj device is an intracardiac catheter for temporary placement in the pulmonary trunk of a patient predisposed to pulmonary embolism because of hip surgery, stroke or cerebral hemorrhage, major trauma, major abdominal or pelvic surgery, neurosurgery, neoplasm, sepsis, cardiorespiratory failure or immobilization.
The Bajaj device includes an umbrella made from meshwork which traps venous emboli before they reach the lungs. This device can also lyse emboli with a thrombolytic agent such as tissue plasminogen activator (TPA), destroy emboli with high velocity ultrasound energy, and remove emboli by vacuum suction through the lumen of the catheter. This very, complex device is designed for venous filtration and is difficult to justify when good alternative treatments exist.
There are very few intravascular devices designed for arterial use. A filter that functions not only in veins, but also in arteries must address additional concerns because of the hemodynamic differences between arteries and veins. Arteries are much more flexible and elastic than veins and, in the arteries, blood flow is pulsatile with large pressure variations between systolic and diastolic flow. These pressure variations cause the artery walls to expand and contract. Blood flow rates in the arteries vary from about 1 to about 5 L/min.
Ginsburg, U.S. Pat. No. 4,873,978, discloses an arterial device. This device includes a catheter that has a strainer device at its distal end. This device is normally used in conjunction with non-surgical angioplastic treatment. This device is inserted into the vessel downstream from the treatment site and, after the treatment, the strainer is collapsed around the captured emboli, and the strainer and emboli are removed from the body. The Ginsburg device could not withstand flow rates of 5 L/min. It is designed for only small arteries and therefore could not capture emboli destined for all parts of the body. For example, it would not catch emboli going to the brain.
Ing. Walter Hengst GmbH & Co, German Patent DE 34 17 738, discloses another filter which may be used in the arteries of persons with a risk of embolism. This filter has an inherent tension which converts the filter from the collapsed to the unfolded state, or it can be unfolded by means of a folding linkage system. This folding linkage system comprises a plurality of folding arms spaced in parallel rows along the longitudinal axis of the conical filter (roughly similar to branches on a tree). The folding arms may be provided with small barbs at their projecting ends intended to penetrate the wall of the blood vessel to improve the hold of the filter within the vessel.
Moreover, da Silva, Brazil Patent Application No. PI9301980A, discusses an arterial filter for use during certain heart operations where the left chamber of the heart is opened. The filter in this case is used to collect air bubbles in addition to formed particles such as platelet fibrin clots not removed on cleaning the surgical site.
Each of the existing methods of blocking aortic blood flow carries with it some undesired aspects. The mechanical cross clamp offers simplicity and reliably consistent operation. However, the physical clamping action on the vessel has been linked to may adverse body responses. Barbut et al. noted the majority of embolic events (release) is associated with the actuation and release of the cross clamp during coronary bypass graph surgery. The clamping action may be responsible for breaking up and freeing atherosclerotic buildup on the vessel walls. In addition, the potential for vascular damage, like aortic dissections, may also incur during the clamp application.
The percutaneous balloon catheter occluder has a distinct drawback in that it must be placed with visionary assistance. Fluoroscopy is typically used to position the device in the aorta. This added equipment is not always readily available in the surgical suite. In addition, the catheter placement up to the aorta may also create additional vascular trauma and emboli generation.
The use of a Foley catheter to occlude the aorta requires an additional incision site to place the device. This extra cut is an additional insult site and requires sutures to close. Generation of emboli and the potential of aortic dissection directly associated with just the incision may potentially outweigh the benefits of using the balloon occlusion technique.
The aortic balloon occluder cannula addresses many of the deficiencies of the previous devices. Placement is easy to visualize and no extra cuts are required. With the cardioplegia port included, this design offers a complete package while potentially reducing the number of incision sites and removing the need for the potentially traumatic cross clamp. However, this "all-in-one" design possesses several deficiencies. First, there is one inherent drawback with using a balloon to occlude a vessel. Balloons are always susceptible to failure (e.g., popping, leaking). In addition, the cannula has a limited placement region. It must be inserted sufficiently proximal to the innominate artery to allow room for occlusion balloon to seat within the vessel and not occlude or block the innominate artery. This cannula design has at least two critical functions (three with the cardioplegia port). A balloon failure means either replacing the cannula (stopping the CPB and cardioplegia), or immediately placing the cross clamp and inserting a cardioplegia cannula. Life support, occlusion, and cardioplegia depend on one device. This situation is less than optimal. The risks associated to a failure are multiplied when one device is used or more than one critical operation.
A need exists for an arterial cannula having both a balloon occluder, which reduces or eliminates the need for aortic cross-clamping, a major contributor to atheromatous embolization, and an associated filter which captures any embolic material dislodged during balloon occlusion. Existing devices are inadequate for this purpose.